Hoe Park

Beautiful, serene and a very lush open space that I plan to visit during the summer months when it can be enjoyed more. The monument to those who served in ww1 & ww2 is amazing and brings to the forefront, when you see the vast lists of names, the sheer volume of soldiers that lost their lives fighting for the country. I was very impressed with the statues to commemorate fallen service persons from land, sea and air forces. The opportunity for amazing views is there, just maybe not best during the winter months. Only thing I didn't like was the monument praising Francis Drake, simply because I don't feel it's right to commemorate someone famous for being a thieving pirate. What the history books didn't tell me at school, I found out for myself.. and upon delving further I discovered he was also a slave trader, an aspect of Britain's 'empire' that is quite vehemently swept under the carpet, again another aspect they didn't teach at school. So ok, he circumnavigated the globe... Which as far as I'm concerned is something worth mentioning, not commemorating. May as well have a monument to Blackbeard the pirate next to him. Overall, a really good park and place of interest, great for a picnic, to walk the dog or just to have some alone time.